Some wireless communications devices have Global Positioning System (GPS) chipsets (or external Bluetooth™ dongles) that convert radio-frequency signals received from orbiting GPS satellites into real-time coordinates of longitude and latitude that are typically accurate to within a few meters of the actual current location of the device. This current location information can be transmitted to a recipient as position coordinates (longitude and latitude), as a map, or as a URL to a map that can be downloaded and displayed used a mapping application such as BlackBerry Maps™, Google Maps™ or MapQuest™. To send location information using current technology, however, requires that the user launch a mapping application. This presents an inconvenience for the user who is already engaged within a communication application, e.g. a user who is already composing an e-mail or who is chatting on an instant messenger.
It will be noted that throughout the appended drawings, like features are identified by like reference numerals.